Monday, November 19, 2007 (Kolkata/Ranchi/Patna)
Stray violence and disruption of road and rail traffic marred a general strike called by naxalites on Monday in parts of West Bengal, Bihar and Jharkhand protesting CPI(M)'s recapture of Nandigram as the shutdown evoked mixed response.
Naxals blew up a portion of a rail track in Birbhum district of West Bengal disrupting train services during the bandh which also affected life in their strongholds of West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia districts.
State Home Secretary P R Roy said life was totally paralysed in several areas of West Midnapore, Purulia and Bankura districts.
A report from Ranchi said Maoists damaged a building in Palama and were successful in enforcing the bandh in some areas of Jharkhand.
While in naxal-infested rural areas markets remained closed, the bandh had no impact in urban areas. Train services remained unaffected throughout the state but long-distance buses remained off the road.
With trucks keeping off road to avoid any loss, loading and unloading of minerals at different places in the state was affected.
The strike evoked little response in Bihar on the first day with life remaining normal barring suspension of vehicular traffic on some highways.
Barring a few naxalite strongholds in Gaya, Jehanabad, Arwal and Aurangabad districts, vehicular traffic remained normal everywhere.
Train services were, however, marginally hit with the East Central Railway cancelling a few trains and changing the routes of a few others as a precautionary measure.
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